Lifeline Puppy Rescue

Thank you guys. YOU REALLY REALLY DON’T know HOW to operate your place. What a joke. There are 10 of you standing around 20 people wanting to look at puppies and wham right out from underneath us this ass couple butt in and adopt the puppy, while you are all standing there dumb founded (REALLY) there is no organization what so ever. Then to stand and wait so you can explain what we need to do. It was like a black Friday shopping. Advertise to get people to show up and only have 1 of the most wanted items. SAD.
Would not recommend this place to anyone. STAY AWAY. Your kids heart will be broken…

If you don’t get there an hour before they open on Saturday all the good dogs wi be adopted. They’ll leave the puppies out for you to see but you can’t adopt them because of the people who somehow knew to be there an hour early. The volunteers were not helpful in trying to find out information. No parking or any organization to the parking. Very frustrating experience.

This rescue seems to have great intentions with poor execution.
We recently adopted our girl from here. She was 8 weeks old. The first thing I noticed about Lifeline is they do very little screening. On the surface this is seems nice. Some rescues make it harder to get a dog then adopt a baby and then they wonder why people give up and buy!
However their should be some middle ground. One couple in our group were renters and the volunteer did nothing more then say «but it’s okay for you to have a pet? Okay» and moved on. No asking for proof, no verification from the owner. Sure it’s easy to adopt but it makes me wonder how many of these sweet babies end up right back in shelters because of poor screening.
Second I have seen many reviews mentioning parvovirus. We too had this experience. 5 days after adopting our girl she was hospitalized with parvovirus. I immediately contacted Lifeline, because parvo is so contagious and she was with her litter mates, some not adopted that day. I received a very cavalier response. I was offered a refund IF I return her. Umm no thank you it’s my pet not a broken toy.
I was told they «treat them and re-​adopt». However I was not offered my money back if I chose to treat her myself. It’s not a big deal but it does seem odd to me that they can afford to treat a dog for parvovirus (it ran us almost $ 4k) but if I choose to be responsible and care for her I can’t get refunded? Even if I show a vet bill?
Again that was secondary, I just personally thought it would have been I nice thing to offer.
My bigger concern was that they went ahead and proceeded to adopt out the rest of the puppies she exposed by going ahead with their adoption event that weekend. Potentially handing out very sick dogs that could run people thousands to get better. We were lucky. We could afford it and she did get better.
I truly think the owners want to do everything they can to rescue puppies. I just think they aren’t acting as responsibly as they should.
Because parvovirus can last up to 3 years in an exposed location and I have seen many reviews where people have mentioned it I can only imagine this will continue to happen. I am fully aware it can happen anywhere but it is fact that it has happened here. That being said I can only recommend this place at your own risk. It could cost you much more then $ 300 adoption fee. In fact our puppy barely made it and it almost cost us a broken heart. Incredibly thankful she lived.

They do not get their puppies from animal welfare groups, and cannot legitimately accept stray dogs. So, where, then, do they get their puppies from?
Vouchers or rebates for spays and neuters are not allowed by Colorado law for rescues or shelters… you cannot take a dog from any rescue until after it has been sterilized. But, people who «adopt» from here are posting they got a «rebate» after they had their dog neutered on their own. That only flies for retailers, oddly enough.
Curious…makes me wonder. Feels eerily like Cruela Devil might be involved.

This in NOT A PUPPY MILL! Great volunteer staff and a great cause! Adopted from here 8 months ago and LOVE my dog! Great healthy dog.

Me and wife got our first puppy at lifeline, he had so much trouble adjusting to our house, but that’s because he was suffering with Parvo. He was with us for a week, and with our vet for two weeks before he passed away. We were so heart broken but still got our second pup after a few months from lifeline. He is healthy and such an amazing pup. i really respect the people for volunteering and taking care of these puppies. If we ever wanted to adopt a second puppy we would definitely get it from them.
We did adopt our second puppy from here and they are the best of friends and love each other so much. They keep our life interesting and we feel so empty without them

Probably closer to 3.5, but I’m good with rounding up in this case.
I can only add my own experience, and it was ultimately fantastic — I have a happy, goofy, healthy and beloved eight year old border collie/​husky mix who came from Lifeline as a pup.
I love that Lifeline literally gives a lifeline to these little guys, and that many pups are brought from regions where they’d have very small likelihood of survival.
The adoption fee covered a lot, including 6 months (I think) of puppy insurance, which was great — especially as she did get quite sick for a week or so soon after I took her home (not Parvo). No idea whether it had anything to do with Lifeline’s practices — adopting any little stray is a risk as to health, temperament, etc., and it seems reasonable that no matter their precautions, puppy kennels and shelters are like day-​cares and schools with unavoidable germs getting swapped around.
One thing I really didn’t like, and it sounds from Tim C.‘s review they might’ve addressed it, was the frenzied sprint of prospective adopters once they opened the gates. CRAP. I felt bad for those overwhelmed pups, and walked straight by the sharks crowding the first pens to the quiet ones at back, where I found my girl-​dog waiting for me.
Overall, I found Lifeline to be a caring organization doing a good job at achieving their mission and doing their best to prepare adopters for ownership. I can’t imagine they have a flush operating budget, and it sounds like they’re working to address the rough spots. I’d be curious to know more about Kate G.‘s experience in general, and when it actually was.
As Tim said, check out the place in person and ask a lot of questions. I’m endlessly glad they exist for pairing me up with such a fantastic fuzz-​butt as I found there. They’ve saved a lot of lives.

I echo A.S. and Tim as a two-​dog adopter from Lifeline. We adopted our first alumnus way back in 2001, and our second three years ago.
First, this is not a mill at all. The volunteers spend the week contacting shelters throughout Colorado and as far away as New Mexico to bring puppies to Lifeline. Those puppies are then fostered until they’re ready for adoptions, which are hosted on weekends at their facility. So, the person claiming these dogs live in pens with 3 – 6 other dogs doesn’t have the whole story.
Adoption weekends can be crazy-​hectic. What do you expect? We live in such an entitled society that the adoptive families all want to be first in line to get the cutest faces. Do yourself a favor; wait until about an hour or so after Saturday open, or go on Sunday. It won’t be as crowded, and you’ll still have a chance to give a puppy a needed home.
They give all families a card and let them see puppies in order, so take your time and find two or three you like. We lucked out in that we brought home both our first choices, and we haven’t regretted it. But, we didn’t care if we hadn’t, as we had second choices picked out. Again, if it’s a zoo, what did you expect? They warn folks on their website that it can be hectic. Take your time and chill out. If your perfect puppy isn’t there, come back a different week.
The parvovirus comment sounds like sour grapes. Any puppy can catch parvo; and, I’ve found the volunteers to be VERY responsive. Our second puppy came home with demodectic mange which is common in rescues and easily treated at the vet — and, as we found, NOT contagious. But, we contacted Lifeline and they were still apologetic and made note to alert their volunteers to watch for it. Helpful hint: they seem to be easy to reach via email.
The only caveat I would give is that it’s not cheap. The current fee is $ 250, and you get a rebate from it for neutering. But, that’s a little higher than the other shelters. However, this is an all-​puppy rescue. So, given demand, I’m not shocked.

This «rescue» is a glorified puppy mill… HORRIBLE!
1. its a zoo: very unorganized… we were there for other 3 hours with very little help or answers.
2. Puppies are all most likely sick… parvo runs wild through these puppies, our puppy ended up having parvo.
3. they showed little to no concern about this problem
4. they fill the puppies with 7 – 10 medicines to prevent illness when in reality it causes tummy issues.
5. the puppies stay in outdoor pins with 3 – 6 other dogs.
6. the phone number… no one will EVER ANSWER!
DO NOT ADOPT YOUR DOG HERE… SUPPORT LOCAL SHELTERS OR BREEDERS, THESE DOGS ARE SICK AND ITS NOT FAIR TO THESE PUPPIES! Stop this business by no one supporting them!

If you look at reviews of this place on Google, etc., there are some who will tell you that this rescue place is a «puppy mill,» or some such thing. Doesn’t seem to be the case. This isn’t the Taj Mahal of locations, like Boulder Valley Humane Society, but this is completely volunteer run and they are providing an important service to the Front Range, and actually all over the region as their puppies come from a wide swathe of places (our dog came from New Mexico).
Bottom line, go see this place for yourself and make your own decisions… every puppy from an unknown source (such as a rescue) is a «risk,» but the folks at Lifeline are doing good work.
My wife and I got there about an hour and a half before the shelter opened and we were first in line… they give you a card and let people in to see the dogs in order… I would strongly encourage you to do the same if you’d like the «pick of the litter.» I think the website updates on Friday and Wednesday, so if there’s one you like, get there early and visit with him/​her.
Overall an excellent experience… strongly recommended…